The Best of the Best
Creative and Innovative Energy-Saving Campaign Ideas
Savings Opportunity: Break Shut Downs
School breaks are outstanding energy saving opportunities. Since campus will be empty for days or weeks at a time, shut downs over break can prevent wasted energy use and save a school hundreds of dollars. Typically, schools will have the opportunity for a full shut down over Thanksgiving Break, Winter Break, Presidents’ Week, Spring Break, and summer vacation. All four PG&E PowerSave schools completed shut-down activities in advance of each major holiday during the spring semester.
School breaks are outstanding energy saving opportunities. Since campus will be empty for days or weeks at a time, shut downs over break can prevent wasted energy use and save a school hundreds of dollars. Typically, schools will have the opportunity for a full shut down over Thanksgiving Break, Winter Break, Presidents’ Week, Spring Break, and summer vacation. All four PG&E PowerSave schools completed shut-down activities in advance of each major holiday during the spring semester.
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Spotlight: Richmond High
The PowerSave Team at Richmond High were incredible advocates for campus shut downs over break. In the weeks leading up to each holiday, students at all sites made announcements and handed out posters encouraging their teachers to shut down all classroom lights and appliances before leaving for the break. Students decorated energy shut down checklists and left them in teachers’ mailboxes along with pieces of candy to sweeten the deal. Three students from Richmond High School took matters into their own hands by walking from room-to-room after the last bell, reminding teachers to shut down electronics and posting disapproving memes where they lights on in empty rooms or computers left in active mode. |
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Success!
The hard work of Richmond High students paid off at the end of the year. For their final report, the Richmond High School PowerSave Team created a PowerPoint presentation summarizing the results of their energy audits, energy-saving recommendations, and savings to date. They shared their presentation at a faculty meeting attended by all 72 of the school’s teachers and administrators. As a grand finale, they unveiled a giant check provided by PG&E with the amount of savings that the district would be returning to the school - $5,941! |
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Community Outreach
Several outstanding PowerSave Schools teams involved students’ families and communities involved in energy efficiency
Several outstanding PowerSave Schools teams involved students’ families and communities involved in energy efficiency
Westmont Elementary
With the support of their principal behind them, PowerSave students rallied together at Westmont Elementary before school on Friday, February 13. As parents pulled up to the campus to drop off their children, the PowerSave Team greeted them with posters, informational flyers, and chants of “Go green, save our planet!” The 30 students on the team reached at least 200 parents and siblings of students. They continued to march throughout the school, visiting each classroom with their posters and more chants of “be more green!” They also marched through their auditorium, where an assembly was being held with district administrators. They reached about 600 students, teachers, and administrators through this leg of their demonstration. Following the demonstration, their Team Lead Ms. Garcia stapled their posters on one of the school’s main portables.
With the support of their principal behind them, PowerSave students rallied together at Westmont Elementary before school on Friday, February 13. As parents pulled up to the campus to drop off their children, the PowerSave Team greeted them with posters, informational flyers, and chants of “Go green, save our planet!” The 30 students on the team reached at least 200 parents and siblings of students. They continued to march throughout the school, visiting each classroom with their posters and more chants of “be more green!” They also marched through their auditorium, where an assembly was being held with district administrators. They reached about 600 students, teachers, and administrators through this leg of their demonstration. Following the demonstration, their Team Lead Ms. Garcia stapled their posters on one of the school’s main portables.
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Kingsley Elementary
Students at Kingsley Elementary used Earth Day as an opportunity to reach out to their school and wider community. They gathered toilet paper rolls from their fellow students and teachers, and turned them into seedling containers for succulent plants. They tied scrap paper and used newspaper to the bottoms of the rolls, and placed potting soil and succulent seeds into the biodegradable containers. The 30 students from the PowerSave Team filled up 200 containers, which they passed out to teachers and to parents. They also gathered trash from the floor of their school’s campus to make a sign that said “Save Our Earth”. The students stood in front of the school with the sign and passed out their succulent plants as they also informed people about PowerSave goals. In all, they reached about 650 community members with the message of sustainability and energy efficiency. |
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Cloverdale Elementary
On Wednesday, November 12th Cloverdale Elementary School’s PowerSave Team took to the streets of Moreno Valley to spread awareness about saving energy. Well, they took to the bus stop. As about 50 other students waited for their parents or school buses to pick them up after school, 4 brave and creative PowerSavers passed out flyers and hand-made bookmarks. The flyers detailed the various ways their parents could save energy at home, explained more about how Cloverdale was saving energy, and provided some interesting facts on why energy efficiency matters. Their bookmarks each had fun energy-saving tips on them, such as “Remember last out lights out!”, “Switch to LED lightbulbs, save money!”, and “NO ENERGY HOGS!”. The students also handed these out to teachers and office staff, who read the tips with smiles on their faces and promised to help save energy at school. The PowerSave Team also distributed bookmarks to the classrooms – to 30 teachers and staff in all –reminding teachers to shut everything down for Thanksgiving Break.
On Wednesday, November 12th Cloverdale Elementary School’s PowerSave Team took to the streets of Moreno Valley to spread awareness about saving energy. Well, they took to the bus stop. As about 50 other students waited for their parents or school buses to pick them up after school, 4 brave and creative PowerSavers passed out flyers and hand-made bookmarks. The flyers detailed the various ways their parents could save energy at home, explained more about how Cloverdale was saving energy, and provided some interesting facts on why energy efficiency matters. Their bookmarks each had fun energy-saving tips on them, such as “Remember last out lights out!”, “Switch to LED lightbulbs, save money!”, and “NO ENERGY HOGS!”. The students also handed these out to teachers and office staff, who read the tips with smiles on their faces and promised to help save energy at school. The PowerSave Team also distributed bookmarks to the classrooms – to 30 teachers and staff in all –reminding teachers to shut everything down for Thanksgiving Break.
Lesson Plans that Shine
The Alliance selected four original, winning lesson plans, submitted by PowerSave Schools teachers, for posting to the national Alliance website. Lesson plans that featured creative tie-ins to green workforce awareness and exploration were given preference for recognition. The four winning lesson plans are summarized below
The Alliance selected four original, winning lesson plans, submitted by PowerSave Schools teachers, for posting to the national Alliance website. Lesson plans that featured creative tie-ins to green workforce awareness and exploration were given preference for recognition. The four winning lesson plans are summarized below
A Green Future for You
Green Team Students Participating in "Green Future For You"
In an effort to introduce kids to the myriad of “green jobs” available, Mariners Elementary teacher Mr. Evans used this lesson to encourage his Newport-Mesa USD students to research green jobs and better understand the differentiation between “green” jobs and other jobs. Using a Green Career website, www.realcoolfutures.com, Mr. Evans had students chart out their interests to show how they could prepare for a job/career in an energy-related field specifically. While this is the primary site used, Mr. Evans also had students research other additional green career websites geared towards kids. This lesson plan can be found on the following link: http://ase.org/resources/green-future-you-lesson-plan
Using the Scientific Method While Going Green
Teacher Kevin Britton, One of the four Lesson Plan winners.
Green Team students at Pomona Elementary put the scientific method to work to understand why their energy use went up even after the school community started employing energy saving practices. Throughout the year, the students monitored the monthly energy bills and compared them to the previous year’s monthly energy usage. When students discovered an energy spike, the Green Team employed the scientific method to figure out the problem! This lesson plan can be found on the following link: http://ase.org/resources/using-scientific-method-while-going-green-lesson-plan
Light bulb Energy Efficiency Lab
Chino High students performed experiments to determine the energy efficiency of different light bulbs that are used at home and in school, namely CFLs and incandescents. Green Team teacher, Mr. Britten, enhanced a discussion about ongoing Cap and Trade policies across the globe by encouraging students to figure out the scientific evaluation of different lighting choices that influences the phasing out of inefficient technology. This lesson plan can be found on the following link: http://ase.org/resources/lightbulb-energy-efficiency-lab-lesson-plan
Energy Use Inventory for Different Countries
Screenshot of Lesson Plan Winners posted on ASE website.
Ms. Pitzler from Buena Vista High School in Chino Valley USD encouraged her students to assess the big picture of what drives energy consumption and efficiency worldwide. This four-part analysis and project evaluation of world energy economics encompassed not only the identification of US and world energy sources, their production and end users, but also the worldwide explosion of energy demand through the year 2035. This lesson allowed students to understand who the significant players are in the energy field and what alternatives the United States has to stave off dramatic increases in energy cost relative to everything we consumer. This lesson plan can be found on the following link: http://ase.org/resources/energy-use-inventory-different-countries-lesson-plan
